Welcome Home?

Hello everyone! I hope all is well back in the states. I just wanted to fill everyone in on my weekend in Loughglynn. For those that don’t know, my grandma is from Loughglynn, well Kilruddane to be exact, and it has been a dream of mine to see where she grew up, went to school, etc. Actually one of the main reasons I chose to study in Ireland, specifically Galway, was so I could see all these places I grew up hearing about from my grandparents.

I was in contact with my mom’s first cousin and my Aunt Anne’s sister, Claire Giblin McCann. She picked me up from school on Thursday evening with her three daughters, Mary Ann, Martha and Kate. Mary Ann is 11. Martha is 8, and Kate is 16 months. Since Galway is a major city in Ireland, a lot of people come to do some major shopping here. So taking advantage of being in Galway, Claire did some shopping for school clothes for her kids. It reminded me of spending the day at the Oakbrook Shopping Center for back-to-school shopping in early August. After my little tour of the Galway shopping center, we headed to Eddie Rocket’s for dinner. I was craving an All-American burger and was so happy when Mary Ann and Martha chose this place. I must say though, it wasn’t as good as one of my dad’s burgers, but it got the job done. After dinner, we headed back to my grandma’s sister’s house just to say a quick hello.It was already 10 PM, and the kids had school the next day, so we didn’t stay long. Seeing Aunt Kitty made me really sad because I realized how much I was missing my Nana. Some people think they talk the exact same, just with Aunt Kitty having a little bit of a stronger brogue. The same goes for Claire and my Aunt Anne. When I was talking to Claire on the phone making arrangements for the weekend, I kept having to check my phone and make sure I was still talking to Claire and not my Aunt Anne. I also saw Sonny (Aunt Kitty’s husband) while I was there. He kept calling me a yank, a name I have now become quite proud of. (He would also call me “Molly O”, but I'm not quite sure why)

After a quick visit, it was time to go. I was so tired that I could hardly keep my eyes open during the five-minute ride back to Claire’s house. Mary Ann was kind enough to lend me her bed for the next three nights while she slept with her mom, and Martha was a wonderful roommate making sure I had everything I needed. The next morning the kids had school, so Claire and Kitty drove me to all the important places on my list: my Nana’s childhood home, Kilruddane Cemetery, Meelick School, Our Lady of Good Council Church, the bog, etc. It was surreal to see and walk inside the house my grandma grew up in. I dreamed about seeing this house ever since the first time my grandma told me the story of when she would walk from her house to the bridge with her donkey and cart praying the wheels of the cart wouldn’t fall off the edge of the bridge (The width of the cart was about the same width of the bridge). I told Aunt Kitty this story and she told me, “When the wheels would fall off the bridge, I would run back home and let Mamie fend for herself.” At that moment, I was never so proud to be Mamie Morrissey’s granddaughter.

After my little adventure through the roads of Kilruddane, it was time to pick the kids up from school. Claire is a wonderful cook, so dinner that night was delicious. After dinner, Claire dropped me off at Aunt Kitty’s to visit while she put the kids to bed. I brought my computer to show her photos from my Grandpa’s 80^th birthday dinner just two days before I left. I wish I could have brought the video my Aunt Chris, cousin, Clare, and I made for my Papa’s birthday. I know Aunt Kitty and especially Aunt Annie would have loved to see it. Then, Aunt Kitty, Sonny and I watched the Late Late Show. This is a popular late night television here in Ireland that millions of people tune into every Friday night.

After the Late Late Show, I went back to Claire’s house and the girls and I watched their favorite movie, Dirty Dancing. Before this weekend I never saw this movie, but I remember one time when my old babysitter Eileen was watching us, and it came on the television. She immediately turned it off knowing it was inappropriate for a 7-year-old and her 3-year-old sister. However, Mary Ann and Martha are very mature for their age as anyone who meets them can attest to.

The next morning, Clare made a wonderful breakfast for us filled with pancakes, yogurt, fruit, and orange juice. After breakfast, we drove Mary Ann to her trumpet lesson. (Mary Ann and Martha each play three instruments! Impressive? I’d say so.) Then we went to meet one of my grandma’s neighbors and childhood friend, John Butler. He is so nice and very funny! We chatted with him for about an hour and a half and then left to pick up Mary Ann.

Later that evening, Claire, Kate, Claire’s son, Fionnán, and I all went for a walk around Fairymount (where Claire and her family live). Fionnán is 4 years old, and to say he is cute would be an incredible understatement. During our walk, he asked his mom if we were going to go to the cemetery. Claire told him probably not today because it looks like it is going to rain.(I don’t know how anyone in Ireland knows when it is going to rain. It always looks the same to me, gray and cloudy). Fionnán was a little sad by this response because he said, “I wanted to say my pwayers, Mommy.” (That’s prayers for anyone who missed it) He is such a good boy. After our walk, we went to see Aiden Giblin (Claire’s younger brother). He currently lives in Dublin but comes home every other weekend to help with cattle and other things. I never met Aiden because he has never been to the states, so it was really nice to meet him.

The next morning we all headed to Sunday mass at the Church of the Sacred Heart in Fairymount. Masses in Ireland are a lot shorter, maybe only 30 minutes. This mass in particular was short because they didn’t have a choir or singer. It really made me miss the beautiful student church choir back at SLU. When we got home from mass, we arranged to skype with my grandparents. Just like last weekend, it was my Aunt Kitty’s first time using skype. It was so cool to see her and my grandma talk to each while being able to see each other. Compared to last week, there was a lot less shouting to each other. (Remember how my grandpa and Aunt Annie have difficulty hearing? There was no problem with my grandma and Aunt Kitty). After skyping with my grandparents, Claire made us another one of her delicious breakfasts and took me to the bog where they get turf (also called peat). Back when my grandparents were still in Ireland, turf was used to heat homes and stoves. Now since everything is becoming more and more modern and electricity comes directly into most people’s houses, turf is only used to make a fire in the fireplace.

Unfortunately my weekend in Loughglynn was coming to a close, and it was time for me to say goodbye. Claire arranged for me to take a bus back to school. She knew of a few other girls who came home for the weekend going back on the same bus. Students here go home every weekend to do laundry and eat a nice home-cooked meal. Thankfully I have family here where I can go for real hearty dinner.

I definitely want to go back to Loughglynn really soon. My grandpa’s older sister, Margaret also lives in Loughglynn, but she was in Medjugorje praying this week. Anyways, that is all I have for now. Tomorrow is Arthur Guinness Day (an equivalent to Mardi Gras in Saint Louis), so I guess I will be celebrating here for all of you back home!

Now some of you may be wondering about the title of this post. Well, anytime I would meet someone in Loughglynn (whether at church or on the street) they would ask me, “How long are you home for?” This threw me off the first couple of times because obviously my home is in Orland Park, but then Claire asked her mom, “What year did Cathy (my mom) come home?” (She studied here in Ireland for a year when she was 17). This may not be my home, but it is where everything began, where my grandparents were born, where their parents were born and so on. Before I left, my grandpa told me, “Molly, when you go to Ireland, everyone will have great welcome for you.” He was right; I have been welcomed home.

Love, Molly

Mary Ann, Fionnán, Martha, me and Claire holding Kate

Claire and Fionnán

This is a statue of a famous football player from Roscommon

The bog; where they dig out the turf

The bog; those are piles of turf drying

Our Lady of Knock Basilica

My grandpa's sister, Margaret's store in Loughglynn

Aunt Kitty and Me at the start of her neighborhood, Parkeel

Our Lady of Good Council Church

Meelick School (where Nana attended)

My great-grandmother's grave

Nana's childhood home